Mahomes and Reid Ask Simmons to Exit Chiefs Meeting

WHO:

Daily Mail Sports - Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes objected to teammate Josh Simmons’s behavior during an offensive meeting.

NBC Sports - Simmons is the Chiefs’ left tackle and a first-round draft pick from last year; Reid is the team’s head coach, and Mahomes is its quarterback.

NBC Sports - Chiefs vice president of sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder explained the reason Simmons missed practice.

WHAT:

Kansas City Star - Josh Simmons left the meeting but stayed in the Chiefs’ building; later, he apologized to Reid and team leadership, saying he could have handled the situation better.

Kansas City Star - Andy Reid said Simmons had been at the facility every day doing rehabilitation and described back injuries as “a little different animal” that “can go either way.”

Kansas City Star - Reid said, “I hope this isn’t asked to me every week,” and urged reporters to “put this to rest” and focus on the players competing.

Kansas City Star - Simmons’s back injury occurred at training camp in St. Joseph; the article identifies his injury as a herniated disk.

Kansas City Star - Simmons is 6 feet 5 inches tall and weighs 310 pounds.

Bleacher Report - After Sunday’s 20-3 loss to the Seahawks, Andy Reid said Josh Simmons’s injured-reserve placement was strictly because of injury.

Bleacher Report - Rick Burkholder said Simmons had improved enough to return to limited practice the prior week but had “plateaued in the rehab process” and was not ready to return to competition.

Bleacher Report - Burkholder said Simmons “worked his tail off” and “worked diligently with my staff every day.”

Arrowhead Pride - The Chiefs agreed with Simmons, his representatives, Rick Burkholder, Andy Reid, and Veach to place him on injured reserve to give him more time to regain full function.

Arrowhead Pride - Burkholder said Simmons would continue rehabilitation with the goal of returning to play at the high level he had previously achieved.

Heavy NFL - The Chiefs lost 20-3 to the Seattle Seahawks.

Daily Mail Sports - Mahomes demanded that Simmons leave a Chiefs team meeting after a furious back-and-forth with Reid.

NBC Sports - Reid and Mahomes told Simmons to leave a team meeting. Simmons left and later apologized to Reid and team leaders, according to ESPN.

NBC Sports - The dispute began when Reid asked Simmons to put down his feet, which Simmons had propped up. Simmons said he was sitting that way because of a back injury. Reid told him to seek treatment from the training staff if he could not sit upright. Mahomes then told Simmons to leave and stop disrupting the meeting.

NBC Sports - The Chiefs’ injury report listed Simmons as not practicing for “back/not injury related-personal.”

NBC Sports - Burkholder said the team gave Simmons time to speak with his family and agents about how to proceed with his back injury.

NBC Sports - Simmons had played in eight games and missed 14; he had not practiced since August.

WHERE:

Daily Mail Sports - The incident took place in a Kansas City Chiefs offensive meeting.

NBC Sports - The report describes the meeting as a Chiefs team meeting; it does not specify a location.

WHEN:

Daily Mail Sports - The meeting occurred a day before Simmons was placed on injured reserve.

NBC Sports - The meeting was on a Wednesday, and Simmons was placed on injured reserve on Thursday.

NBC Sports - The article says Simmons’s earliest possible return was the Chiefs’ Week 11 game against the Cardinals.

WHY:

Bleacher Report - A bulging disk in Simmons’s back prevented him from playing during the 2026 season; his rookie season had ended early because of a fractured wrist.

Arrowhead Pride - The injured-reserve placement was intended to give Simmons more time to return to full function.

NBC Sports - Simmons said his back injury was why he had his feet up; Reid said he should get treatment if he could not sit upright.

NBC Sports - The team said it gave Simmons time to discuss his back injury with his family and agents.

HOW:

NBC Sports - The Chiefs drafted Simmons in the first round to protect Mahomes’s blind side, but the article says he had played only eight games and missed 14.

A tense exchange between Chiefs coach Andy Reid and left tackle Josh Simmons ended with quarterback Patrick Mahomes telling Simmons to leave a team meeting. The dispute began when Reid asked Simmons to put his feet down; Simmons said he had them raised because of a back injury. Reid told him to seek treatment if he couldn’t sit upright, and Mahomes said he was disrupting the meeting. Simmons left but stayed at the facility, later apologizing to Reid and team leaders and saying he could have handled things better. Kansas City placed the first-round pick on injured reserve to give him more time to recover from a herniated disk. Team medical executive Rick Burkholder said Simmons had returned to limited practice but rehabilitation had plateaued, and he wasn’t ready to compete. Simmons had played eight games and missed 14.